As we continue our look at the uniqueness of Jesus, we come to the subject of miracles. Jesus was unique in His display of miraculous power. Others have displayed miraculous power— Moses, for example, and some of the Hebrew prophets—but they were only instruments through whom God was working. Jesus, on the other hand, performed miracles by His own power, whenever and wherever He determined.
Jesus Is the Messiah
The miracles of Jesus were to be one of the proofs that He was indeed the Messiah. He would often point to His miracles to authenticate His claims. To His disciples Jesus said, “If I had not done among them the works which no one else did, they would have no sin” (John 15:24a). On another occasion Jesus said to those who were opposing Him, “Many good works I have shown you from My Father. For which of those works do you stone Me?” (John 10:32).
His Good Works
What were those good works? They were predominately acts of mercy toward suffering humanity. He healed all manner of sickness. He restored sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, and speech to the mute. He fed the hungry multitudes with just a few loaves of bread and a couple fish. He raised the dead. He also turned water into wine to bless the guests at a wedding feast. He calmed the stormy sea with a single command. He walked on water. His display of miraculous power over all of life’s elements is incomparable.
The major difference between Jesus, Buddha, Confucius, [Muhammad] and Hare Krishna is that Jesus substantiated through His miracles that everything He said and did was true. No other religious leader has ever substantiated His claims with supernatural miracles the way Jesus did (Ramachandra, Vinoth. Faiths in Conflict. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2000. P. 111).
Jesus Stands Alone
Occasionally these days you’ll hear claims of a guru, perhaps in an isolated region of India, who has performed great miracles similar to the miracles of Jesus. The interesting thing is those claims are never substantiated. Rumors may float around here and there, but if somebody was really exhibiting miraculous power like that, CNN or the BBC would send a camera crew immediately, and we’d see it on the evening news! No one has ever done, nor will they ever do the kinds of things Jesus did.
History attests that Jesus of Nazareth stands alone in His display of miraculous power. Once again, we find He has no like or equal.